A Yorkie in the White House

The only Yorkshire Terrier known to have been a presidential pet was Pasha, Tricia Nixon’s pet Yorkie (see photo), who lived in the White House during her father’s presidency. Pasha’s canine companions were Vicky, Julie Nixon’s gray miniature poodle, and King Timahoe, President Nixon’s Irish Setter. (Nixon’s most famous dog, Checkers, never lived at the White House.)

In February 1974, Julie Nixon Eisenhower’s first published work, “Pasha Passes By,” appeared in The Saturday Evening Post, where she was then working as an assistant editor. The story, which inaugurated a children’s “Read Aloud” section in the magazine, told of Pasha’s unsuccessful attempt to escape from the White House. An excerpt:

“Once Pasha had made the hard decision about his friend, he began to dig furiously in the tiny hole he had discovered under his fence a few days before. Large chunks of soil flew out from under his paws. By the time he had enlarged the hole enough to wiggle through, he was thoroughly dirty and happy. With one last glance back at King and Vicky, Pasha popped through the hole under the fence. He was free!”